Vehicle body construction for manure spreaders



April 18, 1950 1.5. NEIGHBOUR ETAL 2,504,442

VEHICLE BODY CONSTRUCTION FOR MANURE SPREADERS Original Filed Nov'. 4, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. I

April 18, 1950 L. a. NEIGHBOUR EI'AL 2,504,442

VEHICLE BODY CONSTRUCTION FOR MANURE SPREADERS Original Filed Nov. 4, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Apr. 18, 1950 UNITED" sures PATENT" OFFICE I 2,564,442 j ivEmoL BODY CONSTRUCTION son ivmrm uesmumun ns I Leonard B. Neighbour, MolineQand Frederick A.

Thomann, East Moline, IIL Msiznors to Deere & igo'mpany, Moline, lli., acorporation of Illiv v,

' Application 'June '15, 1942, Serial No. 447,098, I which is aa division'ot application Serial No.

. 364,196, November 4, 1940. Divided and this /a.p plication M333, 1945, Serial No. 591,784

Claims. (01. 215-4) The present invention relates to two-wheeled to the cross membersliand has upwardly turned tractor-drawn implements, more particularly: to a tractor-drawn ,manurej spreader 'of thejflt'ype comprising a 'bOdX' SHPD011t6(1 atthe rear e'ncion p i 31 911? sb qw eels'zihdat the Tre d n; the tram: 'swbah lfhis-epn a i is adivision' of ourlcospendingapplication serial I No. 447,098,!11edduhe1 5, 1942; and i sjiied March;

the longitudinal liraniemembers l2, 13.

The side wall'softhei spreader bodyare indicated by the referncenumeral 22 and are pref- 'erably made ofshe'et; metal which is fixed to vertical angle niem ber s' 23, The upper edge and curved front "end' oi the sidewalls are reenforced 26', 1946 as Patent Ko. '2, 97,42 9}" whifchin" turn, is a division of our 'applications erial Np, 34;19 6, 1 1 filed lilovemberfleg194:0 and issued November 24,

spreader that isfxceedi nglystiff anemia against lateral twisting or weavingwhen the spreader unevenly loaded vor wheh it i driven overroughi" ground, but which is light in weight andi'econom-" ice! to manufacture.

These and other objects advantages of the present invention will become apparent to' those skilled in the art after consideration of; the'fol lowing detailed description of theipreferred er'nbodiment thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure lis a perspective view of a two wheeled l 'flS fld 'fconsfiructed according a, the p iples'of our'invention;

Figure 2 isan'enlarged detail view of one of the braces holding the sides of the manure box 30 line 3-3 in warez:

Figures isje sectional taken 'along'the Figure i ls-a; plan view of the lmd lframe structure supporting the manure box and;spreadf ing"n'1eehanisn ;witir the floor plate'an apron removed;

i ur 5 7 s.? v tic 't mi sni t wi the m ur bp esd s me substant lly a dicatz dby the-line 5 5 'inrlgu'r'e ,4 but howing spr a r} illustrated or a ad of eri f 1ii1edpy 1th b H Transverselvuisposed 5 ii s a siand by li ht. 941181135 28, egflangej of which is fixed tothe inijier sides of the side walls and the other 'flan'g' eofwhich extends outwardly over the edge of the side walls, f The vertical members 23 are firt'ed at their lower ends to the longitudinal frame members P2, (3, adjacenttheends of the cross member's li, ,andare connected with their respective crossmembers'by braces 24; The braces 24"consist of plates which are adapted to be boltedat 25- to the transverse vertical flanges of the vertical angle members 23, and at 26 to the transverse verticai'fianges of the cross members IS. The edges oi'the plates are slotted at 21 tdreceive the horizontal flanges of the longitudinal'lrame members l2; l3 and [5. This construction provides a brace of great strength for preventing the s'ides of the body from spreading,

- and at the same-time eliminates the need for pro- Jecting the ends of the transverse members laterally outwardly beyond theside walls to secure a connection for the brace. The arrangement described above forms the subject matter of our U. S. Patent 2,443,265; issued on our co-pending application, Serial No 447,098, filed June 15; 1942.

The" sides of the body are tied together at the top by an angleiron member 30 formed in the shape of Ian'invertdwthe extremities 3i thereol rojecting along theexterior of theside wallsand-being secured thereto. The arch p'orwi f i 'i l am er e ails g e v .9.1 above the side walls0f the body'to per mit a' heaped-up E v Th vel. r d l et rwa'rq y' longitudinal frame members-"l 2, 13. -=*Ir'a fe'bo y it vised to" vefrjqnor' apron :32 of the comprising a pair *"oFlaterally spaced'jendlessf chains 33"-'whieh are trained over sprocket wheels 35 "and 3 6 mounted on iro'ntand rear shafts!!! and H, respectively; Thieshaiftsflf fii'fil'bi'ir li'aled lII s l iit'able bear ings (not shown) figged to the undersides of the e'irame rnemby the reference numeral 45, disposed at the rear of the spreader body. The conveyor is operated by mechanism that will be described in detail presently.

The front end of the body I is supported on the hitch frame I4 and is rigidly braced thereby against twisting about the longitudinal axis of the body. The hitch frame I4 consists of a pair of laterally spaced fore and aft extending angle members 50 which are fixedly secured to the under sides of the longitudinal frame members I2, I3 at the front ends thereof. The members 50 are connected together by a pair of fore and aft spaced, transversely extending beams or bracing members SI and 52 which are welded to the midpoints and front ends, respectively, of the members 50. Preferably, the beam 5| is a box section beam tilted forwardly slightly, as best shown in Figure 5, while beam 52 consists of a vertically disposed fiat plate or bar. A box section draft tongue 53 is welded to the midpoint of beam 5| and is additionally secured thereto by a gusset plate 49. The tongue extends forwardly and downwardly from beam 51 through a notch 49' in the bottom edge of beam 52, to which it is welded. The front end of the draft tongue pivoted to the tongue at 56. The hitch frame construction described above is exceedingly rigid and adds materially to the stiffness of the body for resisting twisting when one corner of the spreader is more heavily loaded than the others.

The rear end of the spreader is supported on a pair of laterally spaced traction drive wheels 80 and BI which also furnish the power for driving the conveying and distributing mechanism. The wheels, 50, BI are mounted upon a rear axle 62 which extends transversely across the rear portion of the body.

The load-carrying body is supported from the rear axle by brackets which are secured to the under sides of the longitudinal frame members I2, I3, respectively, by bolts I9, 80 and 8|. Bearing housings 82 are carried in the brackets and the axle 62 is rotatably supported in the bearing housings.

The transversely disposed torque member I6 embraces the rear axle 62 and is made of heavy gauge sheet metal or boiler plate, preferably bent into the form of a U-shaped channel member having outwardly turned flanges 84 which are riveted at 85 to the under side of the flooring 20. The laterally outer ends of the torque member I6 are welded to'the inner surfaces of the bearing support flanges thereby forming, in effect, a closed, hollow beam wherein the flooring 20 constitutes one side of the beam. This beam construction has great torsional strength and adds to the stiffness and rigidity of the spreader body. Further details of this part of the machine are given in our co-pending application mentioned above.

The beating and distributing mechanism 45 consists of an upper beater 86, a lower beater 81, and a rotary widespread 88 to the rear thereof, the function of the heaters being to break up the manure as it is fed thereto by the conveyor 32, and to distribute the manure to the widespread which scatters it over the ground. The heaters 86 and 81 are mounted on suitable shafts which are journaled in bearings 90 and'9I fixed to the sides 22 of the body. The heaters are driven through the medium of a chain. 93 having driving engagement with a large sprocket 94 fixed to the wheel GI, and the chain 93 is trained over sprockets fixed to the ends of the beater shafts.

The rotary widespread 88 is driven from the lower beater 81 by a chain 95 which is trained around sprockets 96 and 91 fixed to the left hand ends of the heater and drum shafts, respectively. Suitable means, not shown, is provided for interrupting the drive from the sprocket 94 to the heaters, thereby stopping the operation of the beating and distributing mechanism.

The conveyor 32 is propelled through the sprocket wheels 36 on the rear shaft 4 I, the latter being driven slowly by ratchet mechanism contained within a housing I00, which is journaled on the extended end of the shaft 4I outside of the body. The ratchet mechanism is shown and described in the above mentioned Patent No. 2,302,879, to which reference may be made for such details. It is sufficient for present purposes to state that the ratchet mechanism advances the shaft 4I when the housing I 00 is rocked about the axis of the shaft. This is accomplished by means of a camming member Hi6, which rotates with the wheel 60 as the spreader travels forwardly, engaging a roller IIU journaled on a pin H3, carried on the housing I00. The rate of speed of the conveyor is controlled by controlling the extent of rocking movement of the housing I00, as described in said patent. This is accomplished by means of a hand operated lever I 44, mounted on a transverse shaft I2 I, which i connected with the housing I00 through a lever arm I20 and link rod III.

Fixed to the side walls 22 of the load carrying body I 0 adjacent the front end thereof is a downwardly and rearwardly inclined dlash I34 forming, a front end wall, the lower end of which terminates substantially at the front end of the flooring 20 (Figure 5) but spaced above the latter to provide a transverse slot extending substantially between said side walls, through which the conveyor chain 33 and slats 44 can pass. The dash extends above the top of the side walls to allow the manure to be heaped up and thereby increase the quantity of manure carried in each load. A reenforcing angle member I35 is fixed to the under side of the dash and extends down the center thereof. A generally transversely disposed hood I36 of heavy gauge sheet metal or boiler plate is fixed to the front ends of the side walls 22 upon the laterally extending flanges of the reenforcing angles 28 and is bolted to the top edge of thehitch frame cross bar 52. The hood I35 forms an arcuate securing means which extends upwardly from the bar 52, curving rearwardly near its upper end to correspond to the curvature of the sides, and is joined to the underside of the inclined dash I34. A curved reenforcing plate I4Il is fixed to the longitudinal center portion of the curved hood, and both the hood and plate have a pair of laterally spaced vertical slots I and I42 formed therein to pass levers I43 and I44, respectively, which are mounted on transversely extending shafts I45 and I2I. The shafts I45 and I2I are disposed within the space or forward compartment enclosed by the inclined dash I34, hitch frame I4, and curved hood I35, and are journaled in brackets I38 and I39 fixed to the member I35,

5,. and in bearing members m and us fixed to the side walls 22" of' the One side" ofthe' slot I is notched at 'I46to fecelveand lock the lever" slots I41 and I 42 engage their respective levers I43, I44 at the same point in any position of adjustment. As stated previously, lever I4'4-controls the rate of feed of the mechanism actuating the conveyor apron'fl. Shaft I45, which isloperated by the lever I43,'likewise has an arm I50 mounted on the outer end thereof which is connected with an operating rod I5I having operating connection at its rear end with the mechanism (not shown) forinterrupting the transmission of power from the axle 62 to the heaters 86,

I! and widespread 88. i

A manure spreader constructed in the manner described aboveis light in weight and economical to manufacture, and at the same time has great strength and rigidity for resisting torsional forces tending to twist the body about its longitudinal axis. This rigidity results from the combination of the several structural elements; such as the hitch frame I4, curved hood I36, and torque member l6," which ""go to make up the complete machine. f:

What we claim as our invention is:

1. In a manure spreader of the type comprising a box-like body. having a pair ofside walls and spreading means at the'rear end of the'body, a front end wall spaced. rearwardly from the forward ends of said side walls and attached at opposite ends thereof to the latter, control mechanism for the spreading means disposed between said side walls ahead of said front end wall, draft means connected between the forward ends of said side walls for bracing the latter and for connecting the front end of said spreader to a tractor, and a hood extending upwardly and rearwardly from and secured to said draft means ahead of said end wall and between said side walls and fixed at its upper end to said end wall for bracing said walls and for enclosing said control mechanism.

2. In a manure spreader having a frame and a pair of side walls and spreading mechanism at its rear end, a front end wall spaced rearwardly from the forward ends of said side walls and attached at opposite ends thereof to the latter, a pair of coaxial rockshafts disposed transversely ahead of said end wall, the outer ends of said shafts extending through said side walls and journaled therein, bearing means mounted in said end wall substantially at the center of the latter for rotatably supporting the adjacent inner ends of said shafts, control arms fixed to the outer ends of said shafts outside said side walls, connecting means attached to said arms and extending rearwardly along the outer sides of said side walls and adapted for connection to the spreading mechanism at the rear of said spreader, a pair of control levers fixed to the adjacent inner ends of said shafts, an apron movable rearwardly between said side walls and beneath said end wall, and an apron supporting member extending transversely between said side walls and supported thereon ahead of said end wall, a transverse bracing member interconnecting the forward ends of said side walls spaced forwardly of said end wall, and an arcuate hood extending upwardly and rearwardly from said transverse 6 bracing member and fixed at its upper end to said end wall for bracing said walls and for enclosing said rockshafts and said apron supporting memher, said hood having slots through which said levers extend, a side edge of each slot being adapted to engage the associated lever to retain the latter in adjusted position.

3. A vehicle body structure comprising a pair of laterally spaced, longitudinally extending beams, a flooring rigidly supported on said beams, a pair of walls disposed along opposite sides of said flooring and rigidly supported on said beams, a transversely disposed stiffening hood member rigidly mounted on said beams adjacent the ends thereof and extending upwardly and inclined longitudinally, the side edges of said hood member being rigidly fixed to said side walls, respectively, and an end wall disposed transversely inwardly of said hood and rigidly fixed along opposite side edges to said side walls and rigidly fixed along the upper edge of said stiflening hood, said end wall being entirely supported on said side walls and hood and having an unsupported lower edge spaced above said flooring to provide a free unobstructed opening therebetween adapted to receive a movable conveyor.

4. A vehicle body structure comprisin'ga pair of laterally spaced, longitudinally extending bearns, a flooring rigidly supported on said beams andterminating short of'the ends of said beams a pair of'wallsdisposed along opposite sides of said flooring and extending beyond the latter to the ends of} said beams and rigidly supported on the latter, a transversely disposed stiffening hood member rigidly mounted on said beams adjacent the ends thereof and extending upwardly and inclin'ed longitudinally in the direction toward the opposite ends of said beams, the side edges 'of said hood member being rigidly fixed to said side walls, respectively, and an end wall disposed transversely inwardly of said hood and rigidly fixed along opposite side edges to said side walls and rigidly fixed along the upper edge of said hood, said end wall being entirely supported on said side walls and hood and having an unsupported lower edge spaced above said flooring, a transverse draft beam spaced between the end of said flooring and the ends of said beams and rigidly connected between said beams, a second transverse draft beam interconnecting the ends of said longitudinal beams and rigidly connected along the lower edge of said hood, and a draft tongue connected rigidly to said draft beams and extending longitudinally therefrom.

5. A vehicle body structure comprising a pair of laterally spaced, fore-and-aft extending interconnected beams, side walls supported on said beams, a front end wall supported on said side walls and beams rearward of the forward ends of the latter; a stiffening hood member attached to said beams adjacent their forward ends and extending upwardly and rearwardly and attached to said end wall, said hood having a vertical slot therein, a lever pivotally mounted beneath the hood member for vertical swinging movement in a longitudinal plane and extending out through said slot, and means on said hood alongside said slot for holding said lever in adjusted position.

6. In a material spreader of the type having a longitudinal, box-like body providing a materialcarrying compartment including opposite side walls and having spreading means at its rear end and draft means at its forward end adapting the spreader for connection to a source of draft power: a front end construction for the body,

comprising a transverse front end wall having at least a portion thereof disposed rearwardly of the front ends of the side walls so that the front end wall and the forward portions of the side walls provide generally a forward compartment ahead of and separated by the front end wall from the material-carrying compartment of the body, control mechanism for the spreading means disposed in said forward compartment, and transverse bracing means interconnecting the forward portions of the side walls ahead of the front end wall.

7. In a material spreader having a'longitudinal body includin opposite side walls and having spreading means at its rear end: a front end construction for the body, comprising a transverse front end wall having at least a portion thereof spaced rearwardly of front end portions of the side walls and secured at opposite ends to the latter to form part of the body; a pair of coaxial rockshafts disposed transversely ahead of said front end wall portion and having opposite outer ends extending respectively through the front end portions of the side walls; inner bearing means mounted on the bod substantially centrally of and projecting ahead of the end wall portion for carrying the adjacent inner ends of the rockshafts; a pair of outer bearings mounted on the body respectively adjacent and inwardly of the side; wall portions for respectively carrying outer end portions of the rockshafts; control arms fixed respectively to said outer end portions of the rockshafts respectively outside said side wall portions, and adapted for connection to the spreading means; and a pair of adjustable control levers disposed side by side adjacent and fixed respectively to inner end portions of the rockshafts.

8. The invention defined in claim 7, further characterized in that: a transverse bracing member is provided for cross-connecting the forward end wall portion at a level below the level of the rockshaftsrand means is provided for journaling said members on the body adjacent at least said one side wall. I

10. The invention defined in claim 7, further characterized in that: draft means is connected to the forward end of the body, including a, transverse brace cross-connecting the forward portions of the side walls ahead of the end wall.

LEONARD B. NEIGHBOUR. FREDERICK A. THOMANN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STA'I ES PATENTS Number Name Date 781,956 Kinney Feb. 7, 1905 1,189,658 Brown July 4, 1916 1,797,530 Mayer Mar. 24, 1931 1,963,478 Swanson et al June 19, 1934 2,191,868 Snow Feb. 27, 1940 2,221,266 Roach Nov. 12, 1940 2,256,815 Raney eteal. Sept. 23, 1941 2,274,481 Johnston Feb. 24, 1942 2,342,837 Brown Feb. 29, 1944 2,397,429 Neighbour et al. Mar. 26, 1946 

